Beginnings
by Akiko Natsuko
Summary: This how everything began, and how rivalry became something much more. This is going to be the first part of a pair of stories. Disclaimer: I don't own Sengoku Basara or its characters. DateSana pairing, non-explicit, but if you don't like yaoi then probably not a story for you.
1. Part 1: Origins

Sadly I don't own Sengoku Basara or any of its characters. I am just playing with it/them.

This was written originally as a 'short' how they got together story in preparation for another fanfic I am working on, however, it has grown quite a bit… I hope you enjoy!

N.B. Set after the end of The Last Party.

SBSBSB

The two teens hit the ground hard the glow of red and blue flickering briefly as they attempted to regain their feet, before with matching groans they toppled onto their backs, the glows vanishing altogether.

"Shit," Masamune grumbled as he stared up at the clear sky that mere moments before they had been soaring through. Besides him Yukimura nodded in agreement, equally disappointed that yet again they had failed to reach a conclusion in their rivalry. But between their wounds from the battle and facing Oda, as well as the many bruises and cuts they had managed to inflict on each other there was no way they were going to resolve their conflict today. On the far side of the battlefield, the glow of red and yellow still lit the sky, although they too were beginning to diminish in intensity.

"Masamune-sama!"

"Danna!"

The two warriors twisted their heads at the twin shouts, to see their second in commands hurrying towards them with matching expressions of concern.

"We're fine," Yukimura said as his ninja dropped down beside him to examine his injuries, pushing himself slowly to his feet although Sasuke had to quickly grab him as he wobbled unsteadily before leaning heavily against his spears.

"You have a strange definition of fine Danna," Sasuke muttered, glancing across at where Kojuro was helping an equally unsteady Masumune to his feet. The one-eyed dragon leant reluctantly against his right-eye, glancing across at his rival who was clearly struggling to stay upright and suddenly he felt a surge of…something. Concern perhaps? But it seemed more intense than the concern he'd felt for the other during the Toyotomi incident, and that had been when they had no way of knowing how the other was…so why was he more bothered now, when the fiery teen was right in front of his eyes?

"Sanada," he started and the other teen turned his attention to him, brown eyes curious, obviously surprised by the odd tone in the other's voice. "You're in no condition to make it back to Kai at the moment, you and your men are welcome to rest at Oushu," he added, feeling Kojuro stiffen slightly with surprise before it was quickly masked although he knew he would be having to explain the unexpected invitation later. Opposite he noted Sarutobi eyeing him suspiciously, but he kept his focus on Yukimura. The younger warrior looked slightly startled, and after a long moment of silence Masumune begin to regret his impulsive suggestion, and then Yukimura's face relaxed and he smiled.

"If it would not be an imposition?" He asked and Masumune had to fight the urge to roll his eyes at overly polite response, he wouldn't have offered it was a problem.

"No problem," Masumune replied, inexplicably pleased that his rival had accepted. "Kojuro," he added as he straightened relieving his right-eye of his weight. Nodding the older man went to round up the rest of their men; a quick glance from Yukimura saw Sasuke heading off to do the same, muttering under his breath that he needed a pay-rise or a promotion with all the non-ninja work he was doing at the moment.

SBSB

After bidding farewell to Keiji who'd remained behind to watch Ieyasu and Mitsunari who were slowly winding down, again without a concrete resolution to their rivalry. The Date and Takeda armies began to head for Oushu, with the two teens riding quietly beside each other, whilst their second in commands followed closely beside them, there obvious hovering amusing the two tired generals.

SBSBSB

Yukimura woke early the next morning, slightly confused to find himself in a room that definitely wasn't in Kai. However, as he sat up and felt the ache from his battered body settle in he remembered that they had gone to Oushu. Stretching stiffly he got to his feet and awkwardly moved around as he changed into his normal armour, carefully folding the borrowed yukata and laying it on the futon. Briefly glancing at where his spears were leant against a stand he hesitated before heading for the door, after all he was a guest, and therefore there was no need for his weapons even if he did feel a bit bare without them.

Venturing out into the courtyard he tilted his head up to enjoy the early morning sun, eyes taking in the rather minimal ornamentation before focusing on the large sakura tree in the middle. It had just begun to bloom, and the morning light was glinting off the soft pink blossoms. His silent appreciation was interrupted by the sound of movement from around the side of the compound, after a brief consideration he allowed his curiosity to get the better of him and headed towards the sound.

Rounding the corner he found his host moving gracefully through his katana practice, although the slight frown indicated that he too was feeling the effects of the previous day. It was also odd for the younger teen to see Masumune practicing with a single sword, apart from their very first meeting the dragon had always used six swords in all their battles.

"Morning Masumune-dono," he greeted cheerfully and Masumune started slightly turning to look at him.

"Sanada," the dragon greeted, suddenly feeling slightly uncertain. They had never really spent time together that hadn't involved going for each other's heads, or dealing with a crisis. Glancing at the sword in his hand he relaxed slightly as an idea popped into his head, although he had to ignore the small Kojuro-like voice in the back of his mind that warned him not to.

"Do you fancy a practice spar?" He asked trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice, it was ridiculous how happy just the thought of sparring with his rival made him. Yukimura, however, heard the hidden eagerness and smiled as he felt his own spirit rising.

"Why not," he agreed making no attempt to hide his own eagerness, and was rewarded by a small smirk from the other teen who abruptly sheathed his weapon.

"Wait here then," Date instructed as he disappeared through a doorway that Yukimura guessed must lead into the other teen's chambers. Fully awake now Yukimura moved around slightly as he tried to loosen up his muscles, knowing that his body was probably not going to enjoy the practice. He turned as he heard Masumune returning his eyes narrowing as he took in the wooden weapons that the older teen was carrying – a pair of spears clearly for him, and also six wooden katanas which made him grin.

"Wooden weapons?" Yukimura questioned even as he accepted the proffered spears, automatically moving through some practice movements to test the weight of the spears, wincing as his body protested the movement.

"Neither of us are up for an all-out battle," Masumune replied noting the wince but choosing not to comment on it, before readying his own practice weapons. "Plus Kojuro and that monkey ninja of yours would probably give us grief if we went at it properly," he added, smirking as Yukimura wrinkled his nose at the nickname for his ninja.

"That's true," the younger warrior agreed, as he recalled how Sasuke had admonished him last night not to go picking fights with his rival during their stay. Still he didn't think the ninja could protest against a practice match, especially with wooden weapons, and especially as Masumune was the one to suggest it.

"I'm not going to hold back too much though," Masumune warned already feeling the familiar anticipation as Yukimura readied himself, amused brown eyes met his gaze at those words.

"Neither will I."

Without warning Date charged at the other teen slashing at him with the wooden blades, only to find empty air as Yukimura sprang upwards with speed that belied the aches riddling his body. With a low growl the dragon danced backwards as the younger shot back towards him, twin spears narrowly missing him and leaving holes in the grass. Without the usual flares of light they were able to appreciate each other's moves more, dancing in and out of blows with a precision that was usually lacking in their high-powered conflicts.

It wasn't long however before their usual exhilaration began to creep through them, and they began to collide more and more as they threw themselves at each other, the clack of wooden weapons echoing loudly through the courtyard. Masumune shouted triumphantly as he drove the younger teen backwards, only for Yukimura to throw himself forward, both spears coming to bear as he engaged the multiple katanas.

Heat flared through both teens as they locked weapons, each straining for dominance as they tried to contain their flaring power. Their eyes locked as they broke apart panting heavily before charging at one another once more with challenging roars, this time though the rush of excitement sent their power spiralling around them as they collided. Crimson and Azure light filled the air, as the wooden weapons collided before shattering under the combined physical and power attack. Their momentum sent them flying into each other, with Masumune's forcing them backwards at speed until they collided with the courtyard wall, which brought their flight to an abrupt halt.

"Shit," he groaned reaching up to rub at his head, as he glanced up at the partially collapsed wall before he became abruptly aware that he was lying on top of something warm. A pained groan made him quickly move aside, a sudden heat rising in his cheeks as he realised that he had landed on his rival. "You okay?" He asked, forcing back the blush as he offered a hand to Yukimura who was rubbing ruefully at his abdomen. The younger warrior accepted the proffered hand, although his face had turned decidedly crimson, and Masumune found himself quickly retreating suddenly his eye slightly wide as he stared at his blushing rival. Yukimura blinked and looked awkwardly at the ground as he became aware of the heat in his cheeks and the intense gaze that the other teen was giving him.

Both teens looked up, embarrassment forgotten, as they heard the sound of running feet. Guiltily they looked at the damaged wall, and then around the rest of the courtyard, realising that the entire area now looked worse for wear.

"Guess wooden weapons didn't really work," Masumune muttered as his gaze fell on the splintered weapons that were scattered across the ground, but in truth he had no regret over their fight, it was thrilling to realise that their fights were intense regardless of the situation.

"Masumune –sama," the stern voice interrupted his thoughts, and both teens turned to find the right-eye and Sasuke standing in the courtyard entrance, eyes wide as they took in the damage that the pair had managed to cause. Out of the corner of his eye he noted Yukimura shifting guiltily, and was amused to see that traces of the blush remained on his rival's cheeks.

"What happened to no fighting Danna?" Sasuke asked glowering at his general in disapproval, although he also made note of the blush lingering on Yukimura's face and glanced curiously at the other warrior wondering what had happened between the pair.

"It was only a practice spar," Yukimura protested indicating the remains of their practice weapons, glancing at his rival for support.

"It just got a little bit out of hand," Masumune added, rubbing the back of his head as he met the stern gaze of his right-eye, who sighed with a shake of his head.

"I think no more practice spars," Kojuro said firmly and the two warring teens sighed and reluctantly nodded, although neither could hide a small smile as they glanced at each other and then at the practice weapons. The two retainers shared a sigh as they realised that although their generals would heed their words, for now at least. They weren't in the least bit bothered by the destruction they'd caused.

SBSB

Yukimura sighed with relief as he slipped out of the guestroom into the courtyard. Sasuke had been busy lecturing him about how no fighting also meant no practice spars if they were incapable of limiting the amount of damage they caused, but his lecture had finally been derailed when his scouts had returned. Although technically Yukimura should have stayed to listen to the report he had taken advantage of the distraction to escape, knowing that he would probably gain another lecture later.

"You escaped then?" The sudden question made Yukimura jump and he glanced up to find Masumune sprawled contentedly against the tree in the centre of the courtyard.

"Finally," he replied moving across to join his rival. The older teen smirked, he'd managed to escape fairly early on in Kojuro's lecture on how to behave when they had guests, although he would probably have to finish listening to it at a later date. Yukimura hadn't been so lucky based on the disgruntled expression on his face.

"Sit," Masumune ordered as the other teen hesitated just in front of him, moving over so that Yukimura could lean back against the tree as well, waving off the muttered thanks as the younger teen settled down as well. "How are your injuries?" He asked noting that the other was still moving gingerly, realising that their earlier collisions and the final collision with the wall would have done nothing to help.

"Nothing serious," Yukimura replied easily with a small shrug. "Yours?" He asked recalling that Date had also faced off with Mitsunari before everything had really kicked off.

"Nothing that a couple of days of rest and some sake won't fix," the dragon said confidently, smirking as the younger warrior glanced at him curiously. "The men will probably be celebrating tonight," he added and Yukimura nodded in understanding, many of the Date men he'd seen during the day had seemed to be very cheerful and given what they had all just survived he could understand the need to celebrate. Relaxing back against the tree Yukimura intended to make the most of the peace between them, enjoying the unfathomable comfortableness between them, even though he knew he'd be just as happy when they were back to swinging for each other's heads.

SBSB

True to Date's expectations his army were in a celebratory mood that night, and as the sun began to descend the sake began to flow. The Takeda soldiers were made warmly welcome, and soon the compound was filled with chatter, laughter and more than a little drunken singing as they took advantage of the temporary peace. Due to their recovering injuries Masumune and Yukimura had retreated to the sakura tree, enjoying the revelry from a distance as they drank sake; the older teen drinking more than Yukimura who was well aware of his own low tolerance.

Masumune was feeling more content that he had for a long time, and as he sipped at the sake his gaze drifted to the source of that contentment. Yukimura was gazing up at the sky where the stars were just starting to appear for the night, warm brown eyes bright with laughter, and a faint flush in his face from either the sake or laughter or perhaps both. It had been interesting spending time with the young tiger outside of their usual conflict, and for the first time the dragon began to understand the strange closeness that had existed between Usegi and Takeda.

His gaze slowly trailed across his companion, a strange hum running through him as he recalled their morning spar and the heat that had rushed through him when he'd landed on top of his rival. He smirked slightly as he remembered how the other had blushed, the crimson not disappearing until after their dressing down and he found himself idly wondering how the other teen would react to a less innocence touch if he'd blushed so much from an accidental collision. For some reason, perhaps because of the amount of sake he'd drunk that idea became fixated in the dragon's mind as his eye traced the profile of the other before coming to a halt on the other's lips. Yukimura was smiling, the very picture of innocent contentment as he star-gazed and completely unaware of the watching dragon and Masumune suddenly felt the overwhelming need to indulge his curiosity.

"Sanada," he breathed softly already leaning forward, smirking as Yukimura naively tilted his head to look at him curiously.

Yukimura's eyes widened as the older teen leant in towards him, crimson flooding his face as he realised what was happening but he couldn't bring himself to move. Warm lips pressed against his, and he felt a spark jump through him, similar to that which appeared whenever they fought. A faint glow filled the air around them as he found himself responding to the kiss, a veritable storm of thoughts and feelings whirling around his mind as he did. The faint touch of the other teen's tongue seeking entrance to his mouth broke him out his daze and abruptly he pulled away feeling heat flooding his cheeks as he did so.

Wide-eyed he stared at the older teen who was watching him with a heated gaze, a slightly stunned expression mixed with disappointment on his face. Blushing hotly, and completely at a loss as to what he should do Yukimura stumbled to his feet, ignoring the half-hearted hand that reached out to him.

"G-Good Night Masumune-dono," he managed to stutter out eventually barely able to meet the intense blue gaze that was fixated on him. Awkwardly he retreated, forcing himself to walk as steadily as possible as he headed back to the guest room, acutely aware of the heated gaze that followed him.

SB

Masumune sighed as the younger teen vanished from sight, wondering what on earth had possessed him to kiss the other. He knew that he'd had a fair amount to drink, and certainly more than Yukimura, but it wasn't enough for him to be able to blame his actions entirely on the sake. Besides which Yukimura had responded! And he'd barely drunk anything. Muttering a curse the dragon flopped onto his back, pushing the sake bottle away from him in disgust as he stared up at the starry sky. Without thinking one hand came up to brush against his lips as he recalled the spark that had leapt between them, and the faint flare of magenta that the kiss had caused.

"Damn it," he grumbled forcing himself to remove the hand and closing his eye as he tried desperately to make head or tails of what had made him act like this, and what he was going to do now.

SBSB

Early the next day:

"See you soon Sanada Yukimura," Masumune called as his rival led the Takeda soldiers out of the gate, hiding his scowl as he received an awkward nod and wave for his trouble, and glaring at Sasuke who was watching him curiously before the ninja also took off.

"Masumune-sama?" Kojuro asked, noting how his Lord's expression settled into a frown as the gate swung shut. Masumune had been in an odd mood all morning, and the older samurai had noted the sudden tension between the two teens and he wondered what had happened as they had been getting on fine.

"It's nothing," Masumune muttered before walking off, his thoughts returning to that damned kiss and to the disappointment he'd felt when Yukimura had announced at dawn that he needed to return to Kai. In truth he had no idea what he could have said or done, but the fact that the younger teen had practically fled unsettled him and left him even more confused.

SB

"Danna?" Sasuke asked as he ran alongside his general's horse, enjoying the exercise after a couple of days being cooped up. However, he was worried by the discontent that showed on Yukimura's usually sunny face and the slight slump to his shoulders especially as the fiery teen had been on top of the world of the previous day.

"It's nothing Sasuke," Yukimura said after a moment, the hesitation, and heaviness in his general's voice doing nothing to ease the shinobi's concerns. However, it wasn't really the time or place to push the teen for answers, especially not with their army within listening distance.


	2. Part 2: Union

Again Sengoku Basara and all associated characters isn't mine

SBSBSB

Four days later (since the kiss!):

Sasuke frowned with concern as he watched his master move automatically though the steps of his spear practice. The faraway expression in Yukimura's eyes, and the unhappy set of his mouth told the Shinobi that something was bothering the teen; but every attempt to discover what it was had been rebuffed. It was unlike Yukimura to worry so much about things, and more so for him not to share it with Sasuke and that was only serving to unnerve the shinobi even more…what could be so bad that the teen felt it necessary to deal with alone? The ninja regretted leaving the two warring teens alone during their stay, but they had seemed to be getting on very well, and he had hoped that the stay would help them develop a relationship similar to that which the later Tiger of Kai had shared with the War God.

SB

The next morning Sasuke made his way to his general's rooms to report on his scouts' latest findings, hoping that the teen would be in a better mood than he had been for the last few days, or at least willing to open up as to what was bothering him. If not the ninja was seriously considering heading to Oushu to snoop in the hope that the one-eyed dragon would give something away.

"Taishou?" He called halting at the door and waiting for a response, and frowning when none came. He knew the other would be awake at this time, the teen never being one for sleeping late. "Danna?" He tried again before cautiously stepping forwards and sliding the door open, amber eyes alert as he scanned the clearly empty chamber, noting the absence of the teen's armour and even more alarming the lack of the distinctive spears with alarm. He was fairly confident that no one had invaded Kai which meant that Yukimura had taken off for some other reason, and he cursed himself for waiting so long to find out what had been bothering the teen.

Just as he was about to leave to question the guards his eyes fell on a slip of paper that had clearly fallen to the ground. Eyes narrowing he stepped across and scooped it up, scowling as he took in the messy scrawl before sighing with a mixture of aggravation and relief. Abandoning the note he headed out of the door,

SBSB

"Masumune-sama?" Kojuro called as he stopped outside his lord's rooms, tilting his head as he listened for movement inside. He was hoping that Date was in a better mood, or at least willing to tell his right-eye what had been bothering him for the last few days. It was fairly usual for the teen to bottle up whatever was plaguing him, but it was also usually easy for the Right-eye to determine what the problem was and knock some sense into his general. But this time the older samurai had no idea what the problem was, all that he knew was that it had left Date in a mixture of a foul mood and solitary contemplation.

When there was no response he hesitated for a moment before sliding the door opening, hoping that he wasn't about to get a katana waved in his face; however, the rooms beyond were silent and he cautiously stepped inside. "Masumune-sama?" He called again, frowning as he realised that not only were the rooms empty, but Masumune's armour and swords were gone from their usual storage spot.

As he was about to turn and leave to search elsewhere his sharp gaze fell on a piece of paper lying on the futon, and he stepped over to pick it up. His eyes narrowing as he scowled at the note: _I've gone to visit Sanada Yukimura._

"Katakura-dono," the shinobi greeted unfazed by the katana being pointed at him, he was confident that the samurai had no reason to go for him at the moment and in his ability to dodge if need be.

"What is it Sarutobi?" Kojuro asked impatiently as he sheathed his weapon, mind still fixated on going after his wayward lord.

"Actually I'm searching for Danna," Sasuke said slightly surprised at the terseness of the greeting, but relieved that the sword had been put away. "He made off in the early hours, leaving a note saying that he was going to come and see the One-eyed dragon," he added and the samurai tensed before turning to look at him fully, waving the piece of paper he'd been holding tightly.

"Masumune-sama left a similar note," Kojuro said indicating the note in his hand. "Perhaps they met enroute?"

"Perhaps, I didn't pass them but if they're riding they would take a different route," Sasuke said thoughtfully as he stared at the note, his amber eyes intent as he glanced back at the other man. "I don't suppose Dokurangu told you what happened between them did he? Only Danna has been in a strange mood ever since we left."

"Masumune-sama has also been in a terrible mood for the last few days, but no he hasn't told me what was bothering him," Kojuro said with a sigh and the shinobi echoed the sigh before straightening and looking at the other man.

"We should probably go after them, if they're both upset over something it's going to be explosive if they come up against each other,"

SBSB

For the first time Masumune found himself unsure of what he intended to do when he came face to face with Yukimura. Part of him wanted to fight the other warrior, to revel in the clash of azure and crimson and maybe finally resolve their rivalry especially if they were able to fight free of interference. His hand drifted slightly towards his swords, before his thoughts turned once more towards the kiss that had left him in such a quandary since the Tiger of Kai had left. His hand returned to its folded position, as he wrestled with his thoughts and emotions.

The sudden intrusion of hoof-beats shattered his disordered thoughts and he glanced up, hands shooting automatically to his swords in case of attack. His eye widened though as he realised who it was galloping towards him, a determined set to the usually cheerful face, and a fierce glint in the brown eyes that widened as they spotted him.

"Sanada Yukimura," he murmured, alarmed as he realised their confrontation had come before he had managed to sort out the tangle in his head. His hands hovered uncertainly over his swords as they approached one another, before noting that Yukimura had reached uncertainly for his own spears but seemed equally reluctant to draw them. Time seemed to slow as they drew abreast, and suddenly Date moved, leaping off his horse with a blast of blue which knocked the other warrior off his horse.

The pair landed heavily, with Date swiftly shifting them over so that he was leant over the younger warrior, his single eye intense as he took in the swift blush of crimson appearing on his rival's face as he realised their position, shifting uncertainly.

"Tell me you don't want this?" He growled hungrily, and Yukimura stilled abruptly as he met the intense look. Masumune took the lack of protest to be permission and fiercely pressed his lips against his rivals, feeling the same spark that had driven him crazy mere days before. After a moment of hesitation the younger teen responded eagerly, and crimson and azure light shone around them as they fought for dominance in this new expression of their rivalry.

Masumune could feel the feelings that had been plaguing him for the last few days welling up now as the heat between them grew, and as the magenta glow grew more intense he pressed more firmly into the kiss. Moving his weight to his knees without relinquishing his control of the kiss, he began to trail his newly freed hands down the younger teens chest, frowning slightly as he came up against the added material of Yukimura's new coat. Growling faintly into the kiss he swiftly wiggled the irritating coat off the other, before allowing his hands to resume their roaming.

"Masumune-dono," Yukimura finally managed to say breathlessly as he retreated suddenly from the heated kiss, eyes widening as the roaming hands finally registered. "Masumune-dono," he protested more firmly and the hands stilled, and he found himself meeting Masumune's heated gaze.

"This isn't…" The older teen started to ask with a sudden feeling of lead sinking in his gut, but he was cut off by the younger teen.

"We…we should go to Kai," Yukimura managed to say eventually, his face bright crimson as he looked everywhere but at the other man. "This is not the place," he added slightly more steadily as he indicated the field that they were currently occupying. The one-eyed dragon smiled as he realised that the other hadn't been protesting what was about to happen, a warm surge of contentment rising in his chest at the thought as he reluctantly pulled himself up and away from Yukimura.

Once on his feet he gazed down at his rival, smirking triumphantly as he took in the other warrior's dishevelled state and fierce blush.

"Come on then," he said as he offered a hand which was accepted without hesitation, and he couldn't resist pulling the other close for another quick kiss before turning his attention to finding what had happened to their horses, smirking at the slightly startled gasp that escaped the other teen.

SBSBSB

"Have you seen Taishou?" Sasuke asked the guards as the pair of retainers entered the main Takeda complex. They had come across Yukimura's abandoned coat on the way, and had noted the evidence of a collision as well as the trail that indicated that both teens had headed back towards Kai together – they were just hoping that they had safely reached Kai.

"He and Masumune-sama returned a while ago, they asked not to be disturbed," one guard reported shooting a suspicious look at Kojuro before glancing away as the ninja glowered at him before turning to look at the Right-eye.

"Maybe they're sorting out whatever has been bothering them both?" He suggested hopefully, in truth he had been surprised by the lack of evidence pointing towards a fight between the pair. After all their moods for the past few days had led him to expect that they had argued, and therefore an all-out fight, without himself or Kojuro to intervene would have been the perfect way to resolve it.

"Maybe," Kojuro said somewhat doubtfully, he found it hard to believe that they would be able to settle it without a fight. Even in the middle of a crisis they still found the time to fight one another, so it was odd that they wouldn't fight when at odds about something. "We should check on them regardless, just in case." He added and the ninja nodded as he led the way towards the main Takeda complex, both retainers hoping equally that their generals were fine, but also that they wouldn't explode at them for ignoring their request to be left alone.

SBSB

Cautiously the Shinobi shifted the door open wide enough to peer inside, hoping that all would be well and reluctant to push to far against the order not to disturb his general. His eyes widened as he took in the state of the room, and a faint blush reached his cheeks as his gaze fell on their missing masters. Abruptly he stepped back and slid the door shut as quietly as possible, relieved when he heard no movement or protest from the room.

"You should probably not go in there," Sasuke said to Kojuro, still slightly red as he turned and headed away from the room. Kojuro frowned as he gazed after Sasuke, although he had a certain degree of faith in the ninja, he wouldn't be content until he had seen for himself that his lord was well. Hoping that he wouldn't come to regret ignoring the shinobi he carefully stepped forward and slid the door open enough to step quietly inside, his eyes widening as he looked around the room.

The room floor was covered with scattered pieces of armour and clothing and in the corner both sets of distinctive weapons had been abandoned. However, what drew the right eye's attention was the two teens asleep on the futon, wrapped tightly in one another's arms as they slept. Masumune had his arms wrapped tightly around the younger clearly with no intention of releasing him even in sleep, but it was the expression of contentment on his face that brought a small smile to the older samurai's face. As he watched Sanada shifted slightly pressing closer to Masumune, the older teen instinctively tightening his hold to accommodate the increased closeness. Still smiling the right-eye retreated silently from the room, sliding the door shut noiselessly before heading off in search of Sasuke.

SBSB

Masumune sighed with contentment as he drifted awake, immediately aware of the warm body pressed against him. Humming slightly he pressed a kiss against the brunette hair brushing against his chin, smiling as he felt the other teen starting to shift against him.

"Are you awake?" He asked softly and the stirring teen stilled at once.

"No," the sleepy moan made him smile even more, especially as it was accompanied by Yukimura curling further against him. Gently he ran his fingers through the soft brunette locks, his other hand running soothingly down the other's back drawing forth a moan of sleepy contentment. Realising that he was only helping the other to slip back to sleep he slowly ceased his motions, resulting in a delayed mewl of protest.

"We should get up, I bet Kojuro and Sarutobi are looking for us," he said softly and Yukimura sighed moving his head slightly in a nod, although gave no further indication of wanting to move. Reluctantly Masumune withdrew his arms from around the other and carefully sat up, Yukimura moaned in protest at the loss of contact before rolling onto his back and gazing sleepily up at the ceiling for a moment, before tilting his head so that he could peer at the other teen. Masumune smiled as he met the sleepy gaze before leaning forward and pressing a chaste kiss to the other's lips, knowing they couldn't afford to be distracted at this point.

"Come on," he urged nudging Yukimura before slipping out from under the covers and starting to look for his clothes, noting as he did so that he needed to bathe, a quick glance at Yukimura who had also kicked off the covers showing that he was in a similar state. The older teen had just retrieved his clothes, when he heard a muffled gasp behind him, and he turned quickly to find that Yukimura had finally gotten up and was standing stiffly a slight grimace of pain marring his face.

"Danna? Dokurangu?" Sasuke's voice startled the teens, distracting Masumune from his concern as Yukimura swiftly dived for the covers. Shaking his head the one-eyed dragon swiftly pulled his jacket on to make himself semi-decent before heading to the door, cautiously he slid it partially open, and fought the urge to blush as he met the knowing eyes of the shinobi. "We thought you'd need to bathe and change," the ninja said calmly, deciding not to tease for now at least, especially as he could see his master in the background hiding under the covers with a fierce blush across his face.

"Thank you," Masumune said slightly awkwardly accepting the basket of clothes and bathing supplies, silently noting the 'we' and guessing that Kojuro had tracked him down. The shinobi smirked before disappearing, leaving Masumune to shut the door and turn back to Yukimura – shaking his head as he realised that they were going to get lectured again. He gazed down into basket, his eye narrowing as he realised that Sarutobi had also slipped in a lotion that he recognized for getting rid of aches and pains and his thoughts immediately shot back to Yukimura's obvious pain.

"Masumune-dono?" He glanced up at the overly-polite address, making a note to talk to Yukimura about dropping the honorific later, it seemed rather pointless at this stage. The younger teen was watching him anxiously obviously worried by the frown on his face, and as he watched pain flashed once more over Yukimura's face as he shifted slightly.

"Why didn't you tell me it was your first time?" Masumune demanded and Yukimura blushed hotly and glanced down awkwardly, fingers playing anxiously with the covers that he still had wrapped around himself. The one-eyed dragon sighed and moved across to the other, depositing the basket onto the bed before wrapping his arms around the younger teen, causing Yukimura's head to shoot up in surprise. "I'm not mad, I just don't like knowing I caused you pain," he said meeting the younger's gaze.

"Sorry," Yukimura murmured his blush intensifying.

"Come on, a bath will make you feel better and we're both in desperate need of one," Masumune said, deciding for now at least it was better to move onto safer topics, especially as he didn't think Yukimura could go any redder than he currently was. Releasing the flustered teen he rooted in the basket, throwing a yukata at Yukimura before stripping out of his own clothes and slipping into another one. Still blushing hotly Yukimura quickly got dressed, not quite able to hide his winces and as soon as he was dressed he found the bathing supplies being thrust into his arms. Startled he grabbed them, before letting out a small cry of surprise as Date picked him up.

"Masa…"

"Shut up you idiot," Masumune said without heat. "Now which way to the bathhouse?" He asked and Yukimura sighed before giving the demanded instructions, realising that this was an argument that he wasn't going to win.

SB

The servants had clearly been in ahead of them because the bath was already full of steaming water. Gently depositing Yukimura on a bench, Masumune grabbed the pain relieving lotion and poured it into the water; he knew that it was overkill, but he wanted to make sure that other was okay. Turning back to the other teen he found Yukimura was already undressed and carefully sliding into the bath, holding back the urge to scold him for moving Date quickly slid out of his own yukata and joined the other teen in the water.

"Where did this come from?" Masumune asked running his fingers across Yukimura's back, gently tracing the darker pink scarring that marred the otherwise smooth skin. The younger teen hummed softly enjoying the sensation, leaning into the probing fingers.

"From my fight with Montanari," he replied quietly and the older teen tensed slightly, forcing himself to relax when Yukimura twisted to look at him with concern. "He pinned me to one of the mirrors on the dratted fortress of his and fired it up," he explained softly and Masumune glowered, silently promising to get even with the Lord of Aki at some point – although recalling the anger in Yukimura's eyes when he'd seen Mori days before indicated that he might not get the chance.

Forcing back his irritation he turned his attention to helping his partner wash, ignoring the protests that he was capable of doing it himself. Although he was more than willing to accept Yukimura reciprocating, enjoying the other's gentle fingers as he helped rinse through his hair. Unfortunately the originally innocent touches rekindled the heat that had possessed them earlier, and their bath ended up taking much longer as a result.

SBSB

After the long bath, the two teens retreated to Yukimura's rooms to retrieve their armour, and Masumune was relieved to note that the younger was moving much easier now. Although he still intended to ream the other out about it at a later date, for now, he knew that they had two probably irate retainers to face.

"How long do you think the lecture will be this time?" Yukimura asked as he finished dressing, glancing at the other teen with a slightly sheepish grin.

"Too long," Masumune sighed as he fastened his coat. "But we should probably go and face the music," he admitted and Yukimura nodded and slowly led the way out of the rooms, clearly as reluctant as Date to go and get the coming lecture.

SB

Both teens stared uncertainly at the door to the main meeting room before glancing at each other with matching expressions of dread. Finally Yukimura sighed and stepped forward to slide open the door, Masumune close on his heels as he realised that he couldn't let the younger one face the lectures first or alone. Sasuke and Kojuro were sat together and the empty trays before them indicated they had just finished eating, on the other side of the room two filled trays waited and both teens suddenly realised that they were really hungry, however, neither of them made any move further into the room as the two retainers turned to glower at them.

After several long moments Kojuro got to his feet and moved to close the door behind them, making both of them flinch slightly as they watched him cautiously, waiting for the lecturing to begin.

"Eat," Kojuro ordered as he prodded the two surprised teens towards the waiting food, hiding a small smile as they both shot him suspicious looks before settling down and tucking hungrily into the meal although they continued to throw suspicious looks towards the two retainers. The right-eye moved across to sit beside Sasuke again, sharing a small smirk with the ninja as the teens unconsciously moved closer to each other until they were practically pressed against one another.

SB

Once they had both eaten the two teens pushed the trays away and sat waiting for the axe to fall, unaware that the two older men were highly amused by the sheepish expressions and worried expectation.

"Are you going to lecture us then?" Masumune finally demanded, deciding that the waiting for the lecture was worse than any lecture that they could give. Yukimura clearly didn't share this sentiment and he sighed at the others impatience as he forced himself to look up at them, ignoring the knowing smirk his shinobi sent at him with great difficulty.

"No more disappearing in the middle of the night," Kojuro said sternly glowering at the pair, but his gaze mainly on his own general as he recalled the panic he'd felt that morning when he'd discovered Masumune had taken off.

"And no more ambiguous notes," Sasuke added firmly. "We honestly thought you'd gone off to fight, and had visions of you wreaking havoc." Both teens wanted to protest that, but a quick glance at each other made them recall the devastation that their simple practice spar had caused and they had to admit (very reluctantly) that it was a fair concern. However, when neither retainer added anything else the two teens glanced at each other for a moment before looking back at the ninja and samurai.

"Is that it?" Yukimura asked hopefully.

"For now," Sasuke said with a smirk, amber eyes amused as both teens sighed with relief before he turned serious. "We do wish you'd told us what was going on, but we understand why you didn't," he added as Masumune opened his mouth to protest; after all they hadn't had a clue how they were going to resolve the tension between them.

"Other than that we think it's best to see how things go," Kojuro continued, however, the knowing expression in his eyes indicated that he wasn't expecting things to wrong between the two.

SBSB

Later that night as the two teens lay curled together in Yukimura's chambers they both had to laugh at the amount of dread they had managed to conjure up. It was ridiculous that they could face down men such as Oda and Toyotomi, but the thought of a lecture from their retainers instilled pure dread in them.


	3. Part 3: As One

Sengoku Basara and its characters aren't mine, I've just borrowed them.

SBSB

Unsurprisingly it had been Yukimura who had both uttered the three words that they had been dancing around uneasily for the past few months. It had been late at night after the younger teen had woken them both with a nightmare, and they were finally drifting back towards sleep once Masumune had settled his lover when they slipped out.

"Hmm goodnight masumune-dono," Yukimura said sleepily as he snuggled against the older teen's chest. "I love you," the last bit was murmured, but Masumune heard it clearly and he froze staring down at the brunette with a wide eye. By the time he had finally gathered himself to return the sentiment the younger teen was fast asleep; Masumune sighed and wrapped his arms tightly around the teen.

"I love you too," he muttered knowing the other wouldn't hear him, but wanting to prove that it wasn't one-sided. Unfortunately the words had unsettled him and he found himself staring up at the ceiling, his fingers gently tracing a pattern on Yukimura's back as he listened to the slow breathing of the other. It wasn't so much the words that had bothered him, more the realisation of how close they had become and how irrevocably they depended on one another.

SBSB

The first time that Masumune publicly used those three words was during a battle with an opportunistic Yoshimoto, who'd attacked them whilst they were moving between Kai and Oushu unfortunately with a rather small army accompanying them and without their second-in-commands. Despite being outnumbered, the joint Date and Takeda army had swiftly turned the tide of attack, motivated by the azure and crimson flashes from their generals and the magnificent magenta that filled the air when they fought side by side.

Date was enjoying the fight especially as it had been some time since they'd had a good party, and it was just as much fun to fight beside Yukimura as it was to fight him, and with the numbers they were facing they were both getting the chance to go all out. Unfortunately, his enjoyment of the battle and the absence of Kojuro meant that he wasn't paying as much as attention to the larger situation as he would normally.

"Masumune-dono," the panicked shout cut suddenly through his battle joy and as it registered he whirled in alarm, his heart clenching as it was followed by a sharp crack and a pained cry. A furious growl escaped him as he found Yukimura standing between him and a gunman, the smoke coming from the gun informing him what his heart was trying desperately to deny. As he watched his lover sank slowly to the ground, hands clamped tightly to his side as a pained whimper escaped. The faint noise was deafening to Masumune even over the sounds of battle and with snarl the dragon moved, charging at the one who'd dared hurt the other teen with murder shining darkly in his eye.

Swiftly dispatching the gunman, he moved back towards Yukimura cutting a swathe through the enemy soldiers as he did so before his own men moved in to clear an area for them.

"Yukimura," Masumune said urgently as he crouched down beside the other warrior, relieved when pain-filled eyes rose to meet his gaze. "Let me see," he ordered as he gently pulled Yukimura's crimson hands away from the wound, fresh panic rising in him as he took in the still-bleeding wound. "Shit," he said and quickly reached down to rip a strip of material from his jacket, slashing at it with a sword when it failed to detach quickly enough. With a slightly apologetic grimace Date pressed down on the wound, wincing in sympathy when Yukimura tensed and moaned with pain.

"Taishou."

"Number one," Date looked up as their men gathered around them, forcing himself to focus on what needed to be done. Although the fresh dampness on his fingers was making it increasingly hard to focus on anything beyond Yukimura.

"Someone find my horse, and send someone ahead to alert Kojuro," he ordered and then turned his attention to the Takeda men. "Will one of you ride back and notify Sarutobi? We're closer to Oushu at this point so I'll take Sanada there," he said, relieved when they hurried to obey not protesting that he wasn't their commander.

"M-masumune-dono," he turned his attention back to his lover at the quiet murmur, scowling at how pale the other warrior was and noting with alarm that the makeshift bandage was already sodden. The brown eyes that met his worried gaze were slitted and the younger was clearly struggling to stay awake, however, what really alarmed the dragon was the small trickle of blood escaping at the corner of Yukimura's mouth.

"Yukimura?" Masumune said urgently and the younger blinked wearily up at him. "Hey stay awake, you hear me?" He ordered as sternly as he could knowing that it was the best way to get Yukimura to listen to him, and he jostled the other teen as gently as he could, before looking frantically for his horse. "Oi," he scolded as he glanced back and found Yukimura's eyes had slid shut, frantic and without any thought for their audience he leant forward and fiercely kissed the other.

"Masumune," Yukimura murmured when he pulled back, and he was relieved to see that the younger teen was more alert.

"I said no sleeping," Masumune scolded and Yukimura nodded, reaching up to weakly grasp the hand that wasn't pressing down on his wound. The older teen returned the gesture, hiding his frown as he felt how Yukimura was shivering,

"Number one," he looked up with relief as one of his men led his horse up to them.

"I'm going to move you alright?" He said, waiting for Yukimura to give him a faint nod of understanding before gently slipping his arms under the other teen. Relieved that Yukimura was slightly smaller than him, he carefully lifted the younger teen, forcing himself to ignore the pained moan that escaped the other at the movement. As quickly and gently as he could he moved across to the horse and lifted Yukimura into the saddle, nodding in thanks as his retainer swiftly moved to hold the younger teen in place. Noting the increased paleness of Yukimura's face and the fresh blood escaping from his mouth, he quickly swung himself up into the saddle behind the wavering samurai.

"Stay with me alright," Masumune ordered as he wrapped his arms around the barely conscious teen, never more thankful for his ability to ride without hands than he was at that moment. Yukimura nodded weakly pressing back the other teen's chest, his eyes hovering at half-mast as he struggled to stay awake, vaguely aware of the fear and concern in Masumune's voice. "We ride for Oushuu," he ordered glancing around at their men before urging his horse forward, his arms tightening around the other as they sped forward, trusting that their men would follow him.

SBSB

Kojura leapt up with alarm as he heard the sound of rapid hoofbeats, hand automatically reaching for his weapons as he rushed out into the courtyard. Relaxing slightly as he recognized the retainer, frowning as he saw the alarm in the man's face.

"Katakura-dono!"

"What is it? Where is Masumune-sama?" Kojuro demanded praying that nothing had happened to his Lord, he had been uneasy letting Date move around the country without him, but he had forced himself to accept it.

"Number One is fine, but Sanada was shot," the retainer replied panting as he slid from his horse. "They're riding for Oushu now."

"Get some rest, I'll alert the healers," Kojuro ordered, hurrying away to prepare. He was both relieved that Masumune was uninjured, but concerned over the young Takeda general, and worried over how it would affect his Lord. He also couldn't prevent his thoughts drifting back to the incident with the Arquebus forces, and his steps hastened as he recalled how close to death Date had been at that point.

SBSB

They had just passed the border into Oushu, and the main complex could be seen faintly in the distance when Yukimura collapsed into a coughing fit, forcing Date to halt the horse as he struggled to support his lover.

"Easy Yukimura," he soothed desperately, eye widening as blood splattered onto his hands from the coughing. Fear rising in his chest he slipped a hand down to the wound, cursing when his fingers came away covered in blood.

"Masumune-dono," Yukimura whispered faintly, wheezing slightly as he struggled to regain his breath, slumping back Masumune as his strength failed him, his eyes sliding shut as he shivered violently.

"Yukimura? Yuki?" Masumune said frantically as he shook the teen, receiving only furrowed brows for his trouble. "Come on don't do this to me," he said, aware of how desperate he sounded, feeling his nerves fray even further as he received no answer. "Come on Yuki, please…please…I love you." The last bit was barely a whisper, but still he received no response from the clearly unconscious teen and he felt the last bit of control he had snap. Gritting his teeth he urged his horse forward once more, praying to whatever Gods there were that they wouldn't take Yukimura from him.

SBSB

"Kojuro!" The older samurai was waiting in the courtyard with the healers when Masumune rode into the courtyard, followed by the rest of their men and the Takeda forces, whom hung back as the Oushu leader brought his horse to an abrupt stop. There was fear in the wild blue eye that sought him out, and Kojuro tensed, his own concern rising as he took in the bloodied teen in his lord's arms. Quickly he motioned to the healers who moved to relieve their leader of his burden, swiftly bearing Yukimura away inside to tend to his wounds.

Kojuro stepped forward as Masumune swiftly dismounted, handing his horse's reins to a waiting retainer before moving to follow the healers.

"What happened?" he asked falling into step with his Lord, realising that keeping Masumune away from Yukimura wasn't going to work at this time.

"Yoshimoto decided to attack us enroute," Masumune growled and the air around him crackled in reaction to his anger. "One of the gunman snuck up on me, but Sa..Yukimura sprang between us and took the bullet." Kojuro frowned hearing the guilt in the teen's voice, and noting how the air around them settled as they drew closer to the room where the healers had taken Yukimura. The seasoned samurai had to bite back a curse as they reached the room and he caught a glimpse of the wound that the healers were working so hard to treat, automatically flashing back to when Masumune had been in the same position.

"Yukimura," Masumune whispered faintly as he watched the healers working frantically to stem the bleeding and seal the wound, and the one-eyed dragon sank down against the wall as a wave of helplessness rushed over him. Kojuro scowled as he took in the blood staining the torn blue jacket, as well as the crimson smeared on the hands that trembled as the teen fiddled with his weapons his eyes never leaving Yukimura. Knowing that it would be impossible to move Masumune and that there was little comfort he could offer, the samurai headed off to fetch clean clothes and some water, knowing that just getting rid of Yukimura's blood would help settle Masumune.

SBSB

Masumune had managed to change and wash up before the healers began to exit the room, and both he and Kojuro looked up with alarm as one of the healers approached them.

"Masumune-sama you can sit with him now," the healer said softly and Masumune tensed his gaze flicking to where Yukimura lay before refocusing on the healer.

"How is he?" He hated how unsteady his voice sounded, but he was completely incapable of maintaining a façade at the moment and he knew that Kojuro would never call him on it.

"He should survive, but he lost a lot of blood," the healer said softly and Masumune paled. "We're not sure when or if he'll wake up, and if he does he will be unable to move around much for a while." The healer finished and with a bow disappeared down the passage, leaving Masumune to stare blankly into the room as he tried to absorb what the healer had said…If…If.. They weren't even sure that the other teen would wake up. Kojuro sighed and gently pushed his lord into the room, before disappearing down the corridor to give the teen some privacy and to wait for Sarutobi to arrive…he just prayed that nothing happened before the shinobi arrived.

Working on automatic the one-eyed dragon entered the room, silently shutting the door behind him to give them some privacy. Slowly he made his way to the futon, pressure growing in his chest as he saw up close the unnatural paleness of Yukimura's face before his gaze drifted down to the swathe of bandages hiding the wound from sight.

"Yuki," he said softly as he dropped down beside the futon, focusing desperately on the slow rise and fall of his lover's chest to reassure himself that for now, Yukimura was still with him. "You've got to wake up," he whispered reaching out to grasp one of the limp hands, and flinching slightly at the unnatural coolness, so at odds with the burning heat that usually distinguished the young Tiger.

SBSB

"Masumune-sama you need to rest," Kojuro said softly as he quietly entered the room, his eyes narrow with worry as he took the tense posture of his Lord as he sat at Yukimura's side. The teen didn't look round, his gaze fixated on his unconscious lover.

"I'm not leaving him," Date said and the right-eye sighed, he hadn't really expected any other answer, but it had been nearly a day since Masumune had returned with the injured Tiger of Kai and except when the healers had insisted he had never left the other warrior's side.

"Very well, but you must at least eat, I'll fetch some food for you."

"I'm not hungry."

"You won't do him any good if you fall ill," Kojuro admonished and the teen sighed which the samurai took for agreement, heading off to find some food, which he would force-feed his lord if it came to it.

Date sighed as he heard the door slide shut behind his retainer, knowing that Kojuro would be back soon, and would force him to eat. Although he knew that he had to eat, that he had to stay able to fight and care for Yukimura, his appetite had completely fled him. He glanced down at his hands, fingers curling as he recalled the feeling of Yukimura's blood covering them. It had been too damn close. If they'd arrived any later then he would probably have died, as it was the healers had, had to fight to save the younger teen and all Masumune had been able to do was stand outside the room, watching and relying on others to save that which he held dear.

"You idiot," he said softly as his gaze returned to Yukimura's face, noting yet again how young the other looked without his headband and with his hair loosened from its customary braid. He looked too young to be so close to death. Tentively the one-eyed dragon reached out and grasped one of Yukimura's hands, relieved to discover that it felt warmer than it had yesterday, but missing the fierce strength that would usually be coursing through the other. "Why did you do it?" He asked, knowing that he wouldn't get an answer for now, but struggling to understand why the other teen had jumped into the bullets path.

SBSB

Masumune leant wearily against the wall as he watched Sasuke kneel anxiously next to his unconscious general, the usually unflappable shinobi was pale and his face shadowed as he gently rested a hand on Yukimura's forehead.

"Danna?" The ninja sounded slightly lost as he tried to get a response out of the teen, and Masumune felt yet another pang of guilt needle at him as Sasuke got despondently to his feet.

"I'm sorry," Masumune whispered faintly, but the sharp-eared ninja heard him and turned to look at him, eyes narrowing as he took in the guilt that was written across the dragon's face. Sasuke sighed as he glanced back at his unconscious master.

"It was Danna's choice," Sasuke replied after a moment his voice strangely calm despite the concern on his face and the unspoken fear lingering in the amber eyes as he glanced back at Yukimura. "He won't blame you, and neither do I." He turned back to Masumune as he added the last bit and the dragon saw the sincerity behind his words, reluctantly nodding that he understood. Seemingly satisfied the ninja slipped away to the door, pausing once more to gaze back at his master before disappearing leaving the teens in private.

SBSB

It was a faint moan that was the sign that Yukimura was finally stirring, and Date was instantly at his lover's side, his eye fixated intently on the other's face. After a few moments, Yukimura's brow furrowed and his face twitched slightly as he slowly began to register the pain from his wound. Noting this Masumune hastily grasped his hand and squeezed, trying to pour as much of his strength and love as he could into the hold, hoping that it would be enough to bring the other back.

"Yukimura? Yuki?" He called softly as the other's face smoothed out, causing the older to panic that he was going back to sleep already. However, his words were rewarded a moment later as Yukimura's eyes inched open slowly. Relieved, Date smiled reassuringly at the younger as he blinked wearily, struggling to open his eyes fully, the beloved brown orbs hazy with a mixture of sleep and pain. A faint touch made him glance at their joined hands, and he was relieved to see the other's fingers curling around his, albeit so weakly that it felt like a feather running against his skin. Returning his gaze to Yukimura's face his smile widened when confused brown eyes met his.

"M-Masumune-dono?" Yukimura's voice was faint and hoarse from disuse but it felt like music to Date's ears, as he reached out for the water which had been lain aside ready for Yukimura.

"Here this will help," he said gently, as he carefully helped to sit his lover up slightly and take cautious sips of water. After only a couple of sips the younger teen tilted his head away, leaning heavily into the arm supporting him and Date quickly helped to resettle him on the futon, fussing with the covers until a shaky hand reached out and halted him.

"What happened?"

"You don't remember?" Date asked in alarm, and Yukimura frowned as he tried to focus his fuzzy thoughts.

"We were attacked," the younger said slowly, and then his eyes widened. "He was going to shoot you from behind," his gaze slightly frantic as he focused on Masumune.

"I'm fine, you stopped him in time," Masumune swiftly reassured his lover, he still needed to ream the younger out about that but not while he was barely awake. "You've been unconscious for nearly a week though," the strain of the past week must have shown in his voice or face, because Yukimura's hand tightened slightly on his. Masumune smiled at the gesture before bringing his other hand to rest on top of their joined hands and squeezing gently in response, "welcome back."

They were quiet for a few moments just holding onto each other's hands, each reassuring themselves that the other was okay. However, it was clear that Yukimura had used up his current reserves and he quickly begin to blink sleepily as he tried to stay awake. Relieved by the stubbornness the other was showing Masumune smiled at the other.

"Get some more sleep, I'll be here when you wake up," he said softly, moving his hand up to stroke through the soft, brown tresses. Yukimura tilted his head into the touch his eyes drifting shut as he gave in to the exhaustion swamping him, however, just before he went under completely he opened his eyes once more to peer up at Masumune.

"You told me you loved me," he murmured softly, his eyes slipping shut once more as he dropped off, leaving Masumune to gape at him, a faint blush rising in his cheeks. Trust Yukimura to remember that part, he thought grumpily, although in truth he was glad to know that the other knew how he felt.

The relief of knowing Yukimura was finally on the mend, combined with the lack of sleep since the battle hit him a short while afterwards. However, still reluctant to leave his lover's side even if there were others who would sit with him, Masumune rested his head on the futon, one hand still holding on tightly to Yukimura's as he finally allowed his eyes to drift shut without the terror that his lover might vanish if he did so.

SB

Sasuke and Kojuro found them a couple of hours later when they'd come to check on Yukimura, and in the latter's case at least try to persuade Date to eat something and get some sleep. Both retainers felt a surge of relief as they gazed at their charges, Masumune was leant against the futon holding tightly to Yukimura's hand; whilst Yukimura had shifted at some point so that he was partially curled around Masumune's upper body, his free hand resting amongst Date's hair.

"Danna must've woken up," Sasuke comment quietly as he moved forward to inspect his general, noting with relief the improved colour in the teen's face. He was tempted to try and move him back onto the futon, as he was relatively close to the edge but he was reluctant to disturb the pair. Kojuro nodded in agreement, noting that the lines of worry on Date's face had eased at last although he still looked exhausted.

"Thankfully," he murmured and the shinobi sent him a sympathetic look, it had become clear to both retainers that the fate of these two were tightly wound together. Masumune had barely existed during the time that Yukimura had been unconscious, and both doubted that the one-eyed dragon would have come back to himself if the younger teen had died.

"Now the problem is going to be getting Danna to rest properly," Sasuke said with a sigh, deliberately steering the conversation onto safer grounds as he saw the tension in the right-eye's expression as he stared at the sleeping pair.

"Somehow I don't think that will be a problem, Masumune-sama won't let him do anything that hinders his recovery," Kojuro said with absolute certainty, and Sasuke grinned as he imagined how chagrined his general was going to be when he found not only them but also his partner against him.

"They're going to be asleep for a while yet, you should get some rest as well Katakura-dono," Sasuke said meeting the samurai's gaze with a stern expression. "I know you haven't rested much this week either," the shinobi added as Kojuro opened his mouth to argue, causing the older man to sigh and close his mouth before he nodded reluctantly.

"Fine, but you need to get some rest at some point to," he agreed giving Sasuke an equally stern look and the ninja nodded with a grimace, realising that although it was amusing to know his general wouldn't be able to get away with anything, it also meant that none of them were going to be able to get away with anything now. The right-eye smiled slightly as he led the way back out of the room, pausing once to glance back at the futon, reassuring himself that they were on the path to recovery before carefully sliding the door shut.

SBSB

The next time Yukimura woke he was more alert, which unfortunately meant that he was more aware of the pain emanating from his side. Wincing he turned his head and blinked as he was met with a mop of dark hair, after a moment his sleep muddled mind realized that he was laid next to Date's head. Tilting his head he peered at the sleeping teen's face, noting the lines of exhaustion and worry on his face, and frowning in concern. Gently he squeezed the fingers that were looped around his hand.

"Hmm…What is it?" Masumune muttered sleepily and Yukimura froze trying not to curse as he realised he'd woken the other, however, a moment later Date raised his head and gazed around blearily. His eye widened as his gaze fell on the younger teen, a smile appearing as he found Yukimura peering up at him, the beloved brown eyes more alert than they had been last time. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," Yukimura admitted, sensing that his typical answer of '_I'm fine'_ wouldn't be appreciated at the moment. However, the sudden tenseness in the older teen made him wish that he'd gone with his more normal response. "I'll be alright," he added nudging the other teen, who visibly forced himself to relax.

"You're going to be stuck in bed for a while," Masumune said and the younger teen pouted, only to be met with a very stern look. "No arguments, you aren't going to do anything that might set back your recovery."

"Fine," Yukimura agreed, too tired still to really argue at the moment. Hopefully once he was a bit stronger he would be able to convince Masumune to lift whatever restrictions they were planning on enforcing. The older teen frowned at the easy agreement, especially when he realised that younger teen was plotting, realising that he was going to have a fight on his hands as soon as his lover was feeling stronger.

SBSB

For the first week they didn't have to scheme to keep Yukimura resting, the injury had drained his strength and he spent much of his time asleep. Often he would just doze off in the middle of conversations or meals, and although this meant that it was rather boring sitting with him, they were to relieved that they weren't having to fight him. Masumune spent every day beside his lover, only venturing out when their retainers forcefully ejected him from the room, and always returning as soon as they would allow.

SBSB

Two weeks after the shooting:

"I'm fine," Yukimura protested as Masumune fussed around him, and the older teen paused to throw him a dark look before finally ceasing his fussing and settling back into his seat although his gaze didn't leave his lover.

"Sarutobi was right you do have a strange definition of fine," he muttered, his gaze shifting to the bandage around the other's midriff, hiding the healing wound that had come so close to stealing the other teen from him. Yukimura looked slightly offended at his lover's agreement with his Shinobi's words, but he didn't speak, watching as Masumune seemed to be gathering his thoughts. "Why?"

"Why what?" Yukimura asked at the seemingly random question, tilting his head as the older teen raised his head to stare at him, the azure eye burning with irritation, fondness and some other emotion that the younger teen couldn't identify.

"Why did you take that bullet for me? Why not just take out the gunman?" Date demanded, leaning forward slightly and making sure his gaze didn't waver. He had waited for answers, but he couldn't wait any longer… he had to know, and to make sure Yukimura never took such a risk again, his gut clenched at the thought of the other being laid low again.

"I wouldn't have reached him in time," Yukimura stated simply, choosing to answer the second and much simpler question first. "I barely got there in time as it was," he added, shivering slightly as he recalled the horror that had rushed through him when he'd spotted the gunman approaching his lover's unguarded back; horror that grown to fear as he'd realised that Masumune was completely unaware and without his right-eye. Date scowled as he saw the raw emotions in the expressive brown eyes, but he ruthlessly repressed the desire to go and comfort the other, knowing that he wouldn't get all the answers he needed if he did.

Yukimura saw the conflict on the other teen's face out of the corner of his eye and sighed glancing down at the bandaged area, one hand moving to lay against the area.

"I couldn't let you get shot," he said softly. "Not again," he added fiercely as his mind drifted back to when Masumune had been injured by the Devil King's Arquebus forces, they had only been rivals then, but he remembered the concern and fear he had felt when the other teen had collapsed. The thought of that happening again, now, with everything that had happened between them and the feelings that had developed between them had been too much for him. He had reacted without thinking, just knowing that he had to protect Masumune. He jumped when a warm hand grasped his and he realised that he'd grasped the bandage without noticing, and he glanced up to find Date kneeling directly in front of him.

"Idiot," the older teen scolded gently pulling the hand away from the bandage, before reaching out to tilt Yukimura's chin up so that he had to meet the intense blue-gaze. "Don't you realise that I feel the same?"

"But…"

"But nothing," Masumune cut across the protest. "I understand that you wanted to protect me, but I need you to understand that you can't do that again. I can't… I couldn't bear to go through this again." It went against the grain to admit his weakness, even if it was to someone he trusted explicitly, but he knew that it was the only way to get Yukimura to understand how he felt. His gut clenched at the mere thought of Yukimura being hurt protecting him again, and he knew the desperation that thought triggered must be showing on his face.

"Can you promise me that you wouldn't do the same if I was in danger?" Yukimura asked, meeting his gaze squarely as he reached out and grasped the hand holding his chin. Masumune wanted to hotly deny that it wasn't the same, but the seriousness in the brown eyes boring into him stalled him and he sighed.

"No I can't," he admitted reluctantly, and he knew that it was true. If it came down to it, and it was a choice between him and Yukimura he would protect the other above all else. That realisation cooled the heat of his temper, but did nothing to ease his worry or the strain of knowing Yukimura had been injured because of him.

"Then you know I can't either," Yukimura said softly. "The most we can do is promise to try and be more careful, because as soon as one of us in trouble, the other is going to act."

"I know," Masumune whispered releasing his hold on Yukimura's chin, but twisting his hand to grasp the one holding it. "Doesn't mean I have to like it though," he added grumpily, receiving a slightly watery chuckle for his troubles.

SBSBSB

It was a couple of months before Yukimura was deemed fully healed and finally released from all the, in his mind, ridiculous restrictions that his over-protective lover and their scheming retainers had put in place. Smugly he slipped out of bed, his gaze softening as he stared down at his still sleeping lover, resisting the urge to kiss him knowing that it would rouse the other teen. Quietly he padded around the room, slipping into his armour with a faint sense of relief before retrieving his spears and heading out into the courtyard.

It was an hour later when he heard faint cussing coming from the bedchamber, and he grinned as he heard Masumune stomping around on the wooden floors. A few moments later the door slid open, and he met the older teen's scowling glare with a grin, leaning his spears against the tree he moved forwards and pressed a fierce kiss to Masumune's lips. Just as the kiss grew heated he drew back, causing the dragon to growl with dissatisfaction, the scowl reappearing as the younger teen bounded back to scoop up his spears. It was only when Yukimura turned to peer back at him, a challenging look in his eyes as he smiled coyly at the older teen that he realised what the other was up to.

For a second he glowered at Yukimura before heading back into their room, leaving the younger teen to stare expectantly after him. Several minutes later he was rewarded by Masumune reappearing, properly dressed in his armour and with his swords already in his hands.

"You must be better if you're bold enough to tease me like this," the Dragon said as he stepped down into the courtyard, eye narrowed as he glared at Yukimura although there was amusement behind the glare and a faint smirk played on his lip.

"Want to test me?" Yukimura teased back with a pleased smile, already feeling the spark of anticipation and eagerness as he readied his spears. Without responded Date charged with a roar allowing blue to fill the air as he attacked, at once an answering crimson flare filled the air and an explosion of magenta filled the air as they met in the middle, weapons locking in permanent unison. They gazed heatedly at one another as they fought for dominance before disengaging and charging at each other again with enthusiastic bellows.

SB

From the courtyard entrance Kojuro and Sasuke watched as their generals fought enthusiastically, going all out (or as all out as they could without risking more than minor cuts and bruises) as they lit up the air. Both retainers were relieved by the sight, although they knew that they would probably regret that relief later especially as a wild blast took a chunk out of the previously damaged wall…


End file.
